Equipping TFC Parents as Treatment Providers: Findings from Expert Interviews
- PDF / 587,964 Bytes
- 11 Pages / 595.276 x 790.866 pts Page_size
- 86 Downloads / 186 Views
ORIGINAL PAPER
Equipping TFC Parents as Treatment Providers: Findings from Expert Interviews Bethany R. Lee
1
●
Danielle R. Phillips1 Rochon K. Steward1 Suzanne E. U. Kerns2 ●
●
1234567890();,:
1234567890();,:
© Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature 2020
Abstract As U.S. policy and practice further constrains the prevalence of residential treatment for youth with emotional and behavior challenges, treatment foster care (TFC) placements are expected to expand and serve challenging youth who were previously receiving group care placement. Treatment foster parents play an essential role in the delivery of TFC and its potential to be a transformative and healing environment for youth. Using qualitative analysis of semi-structured interviews from 23 experts in TFC practice as well as more general child welfare training and implementation science, this paper seeks to build knowledge around the training and support needs of TFC parents from the perspectives of TFC experts. Findings suggest the importance of TFC parents viewing themselves as treatment providers and not just parents. They need to have competencies specific to working as a member of a treatment team, knowledge of public systems, and skills to manage youth challenging behaviors. Best practices in equipping TFC parents should follow adult learning principles that focus on experiential learning with peer support and ongoing coaching or reinforcement. Keywords Treatment foster care Training Foster parents TFC competencies Professionalization ●
●
●
●
Highlights Treatment foster care (TFC) parents are more than just caregivers, they are also essential treatment providers. ● TFC parents need behavioral management skills and behavioral health competencies. ● TFC parent trainings should include experiential learning, peer support, and coaching. ●
Treatment foster care (TFC) is a family-based placement for children and youth with higher levels of emotional, behavioral, or health-related needs. As defined by the Family Focused Treatment Association, TFC is “for children and youth with special medical, psychological, emotional, and social needs who can accept and respond to the close relationships within a family setting, but whose special needs require intensive or therapeutic services” (Family Focused Treatment Association [FFTA], n.d. para 1). Eligibility for placement into TFC varies by state and there
* Bethany R. Lee [email protected] 1
University of Maryland School of Social Work, 525W. Redwood, Baltimore, MD 21201, USA
2
University of Denver Graduate School of Social Work, Denver, CO, USA
is no federal guidance on who can or should be served in this setting. Also called treatment/therapeutic family care, TFC is the placement of choice for about 40,000 children and youth served in these settings each year in the United States (Child Welfare League of America 2015). Although TFC is not the most common foster care placement setting, TFC plays an important role in a continuum of care for those children and youth with hig
Data Loading...
